CEO of Pasazieru Vilciens rail passenger carrier stands down

RIGA - Rodzers Janis Grigulis has resigned as Chairman of the Management Board and CEO of Pasazieru Vilciens rail passenger carrier, LETA was told at the company. 

"Every Pasazieru Vilciens employee has been performing their duties responsibly and with dedication, cooperated both within the company and with other industry players, implementing and enforcing the risk mitigation plan. Now that the plan has been successfully implemented, I decided to ease the public pressure and resign as chairman of the management board," Grigulis said.

He also noted that the train crisis in Latvia has been overcome. 

"The crisis is over. However, this morning's event shows that we cannot let our guard down, every employee, from the attendant to the board member must act precisely according to the risk mitigation plan in place, with the utmost responsibility. Accidents of all kinds will happen in the transport industry also in the future, and it is only through coordinated action every day, every hour, every minute, that we resolve them in the best way," Grigulis said, referring to a temporary disruption of train traffic on the Riga-Tukums line due to a power outage on Thursday morning, which resulted in a cancellation of two train departures. 

The rail company's outgoing CEO indicated that there are still challenging tasks ahead, including construction of a new repairs center, receiving the remaining electric trains from the Czech manufactured Skoda Vagonka, launching international routes and introducing a fixed-interval schedule.

Artis Grinbergs, chairman of the Interim Supervisory Board of Pasazieru Vilciens, said that the company's operations and a stable provision of services to passengers has not been disrupted. 

The Management Board will shortly decide on the next steps to be taken with regard to the vacancy of the Chairman of the Management Board.

Grigulis has served as Chairman of the Management Board of Pasazieru Vilciens since October 16, 2017.

Aldis Daugavvanags and Raitis Nespors continue to serve on the company's Management Board.

As reported, in mid-December 2023, Pasazieru Vilciens started passenger services with the new Skoda Vagonka electric trains. Before that, the trains were tested and trialed on the Latvian railway infrastructure for a long time. Despite this, the new trains regularly face various technical problems, resulting in train delays and cancellations.

Pasazieru Vilciens was established in 2001 as a result of the separation of domestic passenger transport from the functions performed by Latvijas Dzelzcels.